Taking stock: Market news in brief

The Evening Standard's City team present sector-by-sector briefs on the latest stock market news.

Banking & finance
Hedge funds going bust hardly grab the headlines these days. Hundreds of the high-risk ventures have collapsed in the past few years. But such talk was enough to send a ripple through the market place yesterday, targeting shares in Man Group and Amvescap. It also served to underline how thin trading conditions are at present.

Building & propertyLate payments on US mortgages hit their highest levels for three-and a half years, it emerged last night, further spooking a rattled property market in the world's biggest economy. Meanwhile, regulators today began probing the subprime market of lending to people with patchy credit records.

ConsumerCity speculators nibbled away at Cadbury Schweppes on confirmation American activist investor Nelson Peltz has built a near-3% stake. The likes of JPMorgan scoff, however, at suggestions the soft drinks and confectionery group may become the target of a bid. Peltz bought a 5.5% stake in Heinz last year and has been pushing for changes.

EngineeringThe race to buy struggling US carmaker Chrysler appears to have come down to three frontrunners - Canadian autoparts manufacturer Magna International, Cerberus Capital Management and a team led by Blackstone Group and Centerbridge Partners. Its German parent DaimlerChrysler will pick a favoured bidder in the next few weeks.

HealthUBS has raised its price target for Whatman from 290p to 315p following Monday's news of a big surge in fullyear profits. The broker has repeated its neutral rating on the DNA technology specialist and reckons the new chief executive is capable of turning the organisation around, although it may be a long haul.

IndustrialsThe Spanish press claims Altadis may be pondering a friendly merger with Imperial Tobacco in order to fend off the attentions of private-equity companies. Carlyle, Permira and KKR are reckoned to have eyed Altadis as a likely target given its size and opportunities for divestment. Citigroup is inclined to agree.

LeisureHorticultural specialist William Sinclair Holdings supplies everything from peat to seed trays. The group says chief executive Bernard Burns has bought 10,862 shares in the company at 91.49p each. This latest purchase lifts his total holding to 140,708 shares, or less than 1% of the company.

MediaPhone lines operator Eckoh is taking legal advice against unnamed sources who have supplied the press with 'misleading, inaccurate, and completely fabricated information' relating to phone-ins on TV game shows. The police have been told and the company says its integrity and reputation have been brought into question.

natural resourcesBiofuels, where hedge fund operator Martin 'Rottweiler' Hughes still owns almost 8%, saw its shares halve yesterday after it warned that full-year results would be materially worse than market expectations. The company, which makes diesel from rapeseed, blamed current market conditions and said the outlook had not improved.

RetailingMusic retailer and Waterstone's bookshops operator HMV has failed to inspire confidence after its latest
profits warning. UBS has repeated its neutral rating and 145p target after balancing the outlook for cost savings against market uncertainties. Merrill Lynch is also neutral and remains unexcited by HMV's transformation strategy.

Support servicesAssurances from Sondex that full- year earnings will come in 10% above market forecasts have lifted its share price to record highs, and have also spilled over into rival group John Wood. It has been a strong market since reporting record profits earlier this month. Evolution says there is a 'good feeling' in the oil services sector.

TechnologyGiant Asian mobile phone retailer BenQwas today hit by an insider trading probe that saw its shares crash by almost 7%. Taiwan prosecutors believe the firm may have sold shares before announcing losses. The deficit stemmed from its failure to turn around the lossmaking mobiles division it bought from Siemens in 2005.

TelecomsSwisscom, the Zurich-based telecoms giant, today said it was looking for further acquisitions following its takeover deal for Italy's Fastweb. Chairman Anton Scherrer said he was on the trail of big and small takeover targets in Switzerland and abroad, saying that funding deals would be 'no problem for us'.

TransportAim-listed European Business Jets enjoyed a further bout of speculative buying after private shareholder PA Rooney upped his stake in the company. During the past week, he has bought an extra 9.5m shares in the private jet operator, lifting his holding to 12.75m shares, or 5.75% of the company.

UtilitiesWater supplier Severn Trent, which floated off waste disposal arm Biffa last autumn, has appointed City heavyweights Citigroup and Morgan Stanley as joint brokers. Severn Trent was last week upgraded by Merrill Lynch, which believes the company could eventually attract the attention of a leveraged bidder.